The report says Maulana Abdul Hadi and a group of elders of the Afridi tribe passed sentence on the two when they confessed after being caught in a public toilet in Bara, the main bazaar in Khyber Agency bordering Afghanistan.

This is the first instance of public whipping in the tribal areas since the Pakistan government launched an operation nearly two years ago against Hadi and the self-styled Islamic government of the Tanzeem-i-Ulema.

Nine people died in August 1995 when paramilitary forces attacked Hadi and his supporters after they raised their own army and established an independent court system.

They were demanding implementation of Islamic laws in their area.

Hadi's party is enjoying a resurgence since the Pakistan government extended the right of adult franchise to tribal men and women for general elections in February for the first time in Pakistan's history.